Erika Smith, Percy Jackson, and the Olympians
by Cassandra-Caroline
Summary: What would you do if you woke up in a place far from home that you've never seen before...yet it looks familiar? Like something out of a book you've read? Erika Smith has woken up in a place that only would exist in her wildest dreams-or in a story she's read before. This is my first story, so please review. (and tell me if you like the idea)
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I don't own PJO, or any of Rick's characters. I do however own my own characters. Also, if your name happens to be Erika Smith, sorry that I might have stolen your name. Now, on with the prologue!**

Prologue

Look, I didn't ask for this to happen to me. After reading the books, I was glad to simply put it down and talk about the story with my friends. What I didn't expect was to be put in the story. And now I'm in charge of making it run smoothly.

Sorry, how rude of me. I didn't even introduce myself. My name is Erika Smith. I live, sorry, lived, in a small town in the great state of Montana with my aunt. I am, well, was, a sixth grader, and I'm currently stuck in the story and lives of Percy Jackson and the Olympians. Unless, of course, I can live through all the stories until the end.

**How was that for a prologue? Yeah, this is my first fan fiction, but hey, I'm working on it. I'm also in honors classes (and Chinese), so the update schedule might be a little erratic. Feel free to review or PM me if you have any ideas for the story!**

Cassandra-Caroline

TMI fans, you will understand the name if you look at my profile. ; )


	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own PJO or anything that appears in them. I do, however, own my own characters.**

It started out as a normal day. The alarm clock woke me up too early in my opinion, and I still was too rushed to eat breakfast. Then the silent ride to my small middle school of 300 people, and going to my least favorite class: Math.

As always, the teacher started going on and on about how geometric sequences, or whatever we were learning at the time, was relevant in real life-which it wasn't. Thankfully my best friend since Pre-K, Maria, was seated beside me. We of course started talking.

"Maria," I started, "did you finish the Last Olympian yet?"

I had made it my personal goal to get my friend to read the Percy Jackson series because I loved them so much.

"I did, and I loved it! Imagine how cool it would be to be able to be in the story, or just meet Percy…" she trailed off with a dreamy look in her eyes.

"Maria, snap out of it! The teacher's starting to look our way!"

Maria quickly sat up, checked her book, and answered the question the teacher asked her to get her to pay attention. We didn't get a chance to talk for the rest of the class, and the next time we would see each other was during lunch.

•••

After the rest of the morning passed regularly, I went to lunch to sit with Maria. Maria and I were considered 'unpopular,' so we normally only sat with each other. As soon as I sat down, she started rapidly asking questions.

"So Erika, if you could be any character in the book who would you be? Do you like Percabeth or Perachel? Is there going to be another book? And wasn't Blackjack a girl at the end of the second book?" After she finished she took a deep breath.

"Woah! Calm down Maria. Next time, it might be smart to breathe between questions."

Maria glared at me for a moment before asking, "So, what are your answers?"

I sighed before saying, "Annabeth, Percabeth, yes, and yes. I don't know how the editors didn't catch the last one."

Maria just shrugged before continuing to eat her lunch. I started poking the 'Mystery Meat', as the school so eloquently named it, before staring at her as she ate hers in 30 seconds.

"How do you even eat that stuff? You do realize that it either is roadkill or is made with cardboard?"

"I'm hungry," was her only response.

Maria looked at me again and exclaimed, "Why are you looking at me funny?"

Sometimes I wondered why I even bothered to reason with her.

•••

School had ended before things started to get weird. And not the normal, 'Hey look, a random dog is in the school!' or 'Watch out those two kids are having a fist-fight!' weird. No, this was the random glowing underneath the bookshelf in the library weird.

"What the heck?" I muttered underneath my breath.

I had gone into the library to find a book on Greek Myths for a History project. Normally, I don't like being in libraries. I would prefer a book store any day. But when the teacher said we had to have a book for a resource, I decided to go to the school library after school.

Of course, being too curious for my own good, I decided to go closer to it. I stopped short when I heard people speaking from the other side of the shelves.

The first one said, "This is not good. The story's rewriting itself. If the future changes there, the whole world could be in danger."

"So why don't you just fix it? Go into the story yourself!" the second voice said.

Go into the story? I thought. Okay, I need to get out of here before the crazies find me. I slowly started to back towards the desk to check out my book and get the heck out of Dodge.

"Don't you think I already tried? The book seems to want us to send someone else," the first voice said again.

"Someone else? Someone else? Who would we even send-" the voice was cut short when I accidentally knocked over a few books beside me.

_Why am I such a klutz?_ I asked myself. I ducked behind the bookshelf behind me. I heard footsteps coming closer to my hiding spot, but they soon left.

"Must've been someone else," the second voice said.

"But I was sure someone was there," was the first's response.

"Never mind, we need to leave now. This has to be fixed and the sooner we find a solution the better."

Both of the people seemed to disappear. I got out from behind the bookshelf and looked at the books I had knocked over. The first cover read _Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief_. I looked around and decided to pick it up. Hey, I wanted to reread the books anyways. I went to the desk to check it out, and then left for home.

•••

After yelling, "I'm home!" to my Aunt Abby, I started climbing the stairs to my room. Yes, I live with my aunt in case you were wondering. My mom and dad both died in a car wreck when I was about one. So I was sent off to live with my closest living relative- my mom's sister.

Aunt Abby seems very relaxed, but she's extremely protective of me. I think it has something to do with the fact that she lost her sister in the matter of a few seconds. She is a historian, which is the reason why I love ancient cultures so much. Most kids grow up watching Disney movies, I grew up hearing her read the Iliad and the Odyssey to me so I could fall asleep.

Once I reached my room, I threw my backpack into one corner and jumped onto my bed with the book. I didn't start reading for a few moments because I was debating turning in the crazies who were in the library. People who talked like that must have some serious issues.

I decided that I would worry about it in the morning, all I wanted was to read a good book and get my mind off school. I opened the book to the first page, where instead of the title, there was a note. It said, **We can't change the story anymore. Now it's up to you. Good luck.** _Well, I thought, seems like the crazies got to this book too_. I just hope they didn't tear out pages or anything.

If I had another chance, I wouldn't have turned the page. I would have shut the book, thrown it across the room, and then probably proceeded to burn it. And then shred the ashes. But unfortunately, I didn't do that then. I turned the page, and as soon as I read the words, I Accidentally Vaporize My Pre-Algebra Teacher, a bright light erupted from the pages, and then the world went white.

**Sooooooo...how did you like it? Please review, this is my first fan fiction.**


	3. Chapter 2

**Me: Say it.**

**Percy: Will I get blue food?**

**Me: Yesss? I have blue cookies….**

**Percy: CASSANDRA-CAROLINE DOESN'T OWN ME OR ANY OF THE PEOPLE MENTIONED IN MY STORY. SHE DOES OWN HER CREATIVITY. Can I have blue cookies now?**

**Me: I lied about having blue cookies. Want a regular one?**

**Percy: NOOOO BLUE COOKIES WHYYYYY?**

**Me: Hey look, there's Annabeth!**

***runs off***

**Percy: Annabeth? Where?**

I started to sit up, completely disoriented. _Where am I? _I wondered. All I could remember was reading that weird note before the world turned white. As I looked around, I thought, _Okay, either I have gone crazy or I have entered the realm of COMPLETELY AND TOTALLY IMPOSSIBLE. _Personally, I would've prefered the crazy option.

In front of me were three old women. And when I say old, I mean _old. _These ladies looked like they had seen the first dinosaur and every creature since. They all had white hair, but it seemed elegant in the identical braids in their hair. They were dressed in their own grey pelops, or traditional greek dresses. Looking at them was, for some reason, unsettling, so I decided to look around me. My breath was taken away.

The walls were covered in multicolored tapestries, and some of the threads seemed to glow. The details on the tapestries were amazing. I almost thought I would be able to walk into them and talk with the people. Each tapestry was of a main event that happened during hundred year periods. On my left was a tapestry of the Medieval ages, and beside it was an image of the sack of Rome. I also saw both of the World Wars in a gruesome tapestry closest to the women.

The three old ladies seemed to be weaving at a loom. One was at a spinning wheel, and even though she didn't use any dye, whenever she spun a thread, it came out a different color. The one in the middle wove the threads into the tapestry while the last took a pair of ancient-looking scissors and cut one of the threads. She only did this once, but when she did I could hear the _shink!_ of the scissors from across the room.

Suddenly, the first woman began to speak.

"Erika Christine Smith. Born on September 12, A.D. 2000. Thread color: emerald green. Tapestry of origin: A.D. 2100," she suddenly said. I don't know about you, but when some random ancient lady starts spouting random facts about me, I get a tad freaked out. In this case, that meant backing up so quickly that I tripped over my own feet and landed on the floor. I continued to scoot backwards as the second woman took a breath.

"Blends well with background colors, but also can shine at some points. Her thread branched out from a saffron yellow thread that belonged to her father and a sapphire blue thread that belonged to her mother. Both were cut short in the tapestry due to a red thread. Her thread later interwove with a sky blue color, which I believe belongs to her aunt," she stated.

I was starting to hyperventilate. _How did these creepy old ladies know so much about me?_ The third, who was by far the scariest with her rusted scissors, suddenly snapped at her companions.

"Clotho, Lachesis, honestly, don't you have any manners? Remember-when people somehow come across our home we say, 'Hi, I'm Atropos, what's your name?' We don't start telling them all the facts about their life. Honestly, I haven't planned for her to die of a heart attack."

Well, _that_ wasn't reassuring. _And why would this so called 'Atropos' be able to plan for me to have a heart attack? _I thought. I continued to back away into the corner. Atropos, I think, put down her scissors for a moment, turned, and started to walk towards me. I tried to back up further, but my back was to a corner. I was trapped. Atropos started to speak.

"Erika, calm down. We don't want to hurt you. We won't hurt you. I know for a fact you aren't going to die anytime soo-mphm!"

She was cut off by another woman who placed her hand over Atropos' mouth. The other women had walked up while she was talking.

"Sweetie, I hope you don't mind me calling you that, sorry for my sister. And for the outburst earlier. We just haven't had company in _millenia_, so we might need to brush up on our social skills. So, let's start again. My name's Lachesis, what's yours?" She held out her hand like she expected me to shake it. _This lady must be crazier than those people I heard talking in the library, _I thought. _There's no way in heck I'm shaking her hand. _

Clotho, I assumed, since she was the only one who wasn't named, said, "Lachesis, you know for a fact that she doesn't like strangers! You had her interact with different people, you should know better!" she exclaimed as she grabbed her sister's hand back. "Hi, I'm Clotho. I didn't mean to scare you, it's just you have so much _potential! _You can sing and draw and you _can_ be friendly when you want to be and-"

Clotho continued to ramble while I thought. _Seriously, this is supposed to make me feel comfortable? These ladies must have been here a LONG time. _I decided to interrupt Clotho, who had continued talking about me this whole time while her sisters stared at me in excitement.

"OKAY! I get it! You people somehow know all about me, but I know nothing about you! How did I even get here? What am I doing here, and where even _is _here?" I quickly said.

The three sisters looked at me in shock. _Well, they must not be used to modern teenagers. _Suddenly they started bursting out laughing.

"Oh...my...goodness…" Atropos said between laughter. "Clotho... make sure to spin a few more lives with just as much spunk as this girl!"

"Would you PLEASE explain to me where I am?" I burst out again.

The women started quieting down before Lachesis started to talk.

"You're in our home, of course. And as for who we are, you know our names," was her response.

Clotho said, "Erika, have you ever read Greek myths?"

Before I could respond, her sister Lachesis broke in again with, "Of course she does. If you had paid attention to what I was doing, you wouldn't even have to ask that question! Her aunt read her the Iliad and the Odyssey as bedtime stories!"

_Seriously, how do these creepy ladies know so much? _I thought.

Atropos spoke again, "Erika, this might come as a shock to you, but we are the three fates."

I snorted. "If you guys are the fates, then I must be a satyr," was my _oh so smart _response.

"Well, girl," Clotho said, "you might want to learn how to walk with hooves because we are indeed who my sister says we are. How else would we know who you are?"

I stopped to think for a moment.

"So, let's say hypothetically, I believe what you three are saying. You are in charge of people's lives and all that jazz, but what does that have to do with me and why am I here?"

"That is an excellent question. So, Lachesis, why did you yank her thread out of her own tapestry?" Atropos said.

Lachesis said, "As you know sisters, in the other tapestry we are working on, something has gone wrong, and we need someone to help. She has the most knowledge of our world, and she fits the age category. She can't fill the roll completely, but she will do just fine in his place."

"Wait. Hold up a second. I've been yanked from my own world just to fix a mess up? Won't anyone miss me? And why should I solve your problems?" I said.

The three sisters shared a look before Clotho said, "They won't miss you because at the moment, you never were there. You will remember your memories from your world to help you in the new one. All you have to do is make sure the story plays out the way it is supposed to."

"What story? And will I ever be able to go back home?" I asked.

"I believe you have read them in their book form, and to go home, if you so choose, you must complete the story, and make sure it ends with the proper outcome. If not, you will start all over again and at the same age," Lachesis said.

"Who even said I would do this? Don't I have a choice in this?" I asked them.

They grabbed my hands and pulled me to a separate tapestry that I didn't notice before. Lachesis pointed to an emerald green thread that was attached to the frayed end of a lime green thread. I realized that it was _my_ thread before Atropos spoke.

"It has already been done. Good luck, Erika. I hope I don't see your thread anytime soon unless it is for you to return home."

The world started to fade to white again before I saw five words burned in gold lettering at the top of the frame: _Percy Jackson and the Olympians. _My last thought was, _oh. dear. gosh. _before I lost consciousness.

**Yes, I know it's slow going, but hey, remember, first time writing. Review or PM me if you have any questions or suggestions. Thanks!**

**Cassandra-Caroline**


	4. Chapter 3

**Me: Percy?  
Percy: …**

**Me: Percy, look, I'm really sorry about the cookie fiasco. Will you please say it?**

**Percy: …**

**Me: Annabeth, please explain what's wrong with him?**

**Annabeth: He's refusing to talk to you because you didn't give him the blue cookies. **

**Me: Will you say the disclaimer then?**

**Annabeth: Why should I?**

**Me: Because I happen to know the Stolls and they might have a spider collection.**

**Annabeth: Promise me you will never do this and I will say it. **

**Me: I swear on River Sticks. **

**Annabeth: Fine, but only since you swore on the River Styx. Cassandra-Caroline doesn't own anyone in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. And most of the dialogue belongs to Percy's first book. If they're directly quoted you will notice, hopefully. Most of what Percy says is directly from the book. Happy now?**

**Me: Yes. You can leave now. **

**Annabeth: Come on, Percy. Let's go. **

**Me: *takes out phone to text the Stolls* MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I said sticks instead of Styx…. what even are river sticks?**

I woke up to the feeling of a small and somewhat light object colliding with my head. _What the Hades is going on here? _I thought. I opened my eyes and saw that I was on a school bus. I reached up into my hair and grabbed the offending object. _Peanut butter and ketchup? _I wondered as another piece attached to my hair.

I started to turn around before I saw a boy about my age sitting beside me. I've seen a lot of mad people, but this guy looked on the verge of snapping. He had jet black hair and sea green eyes. _Wait… that's not possible, _I thought. But my theory was proved when he started to turn towards me. He looked exactly like a certain someone off of a favorite book of mine.

Another projectile hit me in the head before he muttered, "I'm going to kill her." There is no way that this could be Percy, but then again, I just had a conversation about my entire life with three ladies older than dirt. _It's okay. I like peanut butter. _Woah, I didn't think that. But as soon as the words appeared into my head, I said them. Call me crazy, but for some reason I trusted the voice in my head. Which, if I ever said out loud, would probably get me locked in a padded white cell for the rest of my life.

"_Hello?" _I thought. I wasn't expecting any sort of answer, but I got one.

"_Hi Erika," _the voice said. Okay, so at this I might have started freaking out a tad.

"_Who the Hades are you and what are you doing in my head?" _ I asked it.

"_Well, you're in my place at the moment. My name's Grover Underwood," _it responded.

Oh gosh. Not only did I meet the three crazy ladies, but now I had the voice of a (might I say fictional) satyr in my head. Sure, why not, just a normal day in the life of Erika Smith. _Not. _

"_So, let me ask this again, Why are you in my head?" _I thought/screamed at him.

"_Well, I might have gone off on my search a bit too early according to the fates and had an unfortunate encounter with a cyclops, but thankfully they turned me into a fly until someone can come rescue me. So the Fates put you in my place. I'll help you as much as I can. Just a warning though, you're a cloud nymph now who just applied to work for Camp Half-Blood," _Grover said. Well that's nice. First the trio of sisters put me in a different world and now I'm a cloud nymph. Just wonderful.

"_Hey," _Grover said,"_Don't trash being a cloud nymph. Now you have some control over winds. So that's an upside. And don't worry about Percy. I'll help you when you talk with him. Remember, you've known him since the beginning of the year. And watch out for Mrs. Dodds. I don't like her."_

"_Well, that might be because she's a fury-" _I was cut off by Grover screaming in my head.

"_WHAT?! How do you know that?"_

"_Well, I did my homework and read the books. FYI, Percy is the child of the prophecy and he's a son of Poseidon," _I said.

"_SHHHH we're about to have to talk to Percy again!" _Grover said.

I looked up and realized that the entire exchange had only taken a fraction of a second because I was still able to dodge the next piece of (I'm assuming) Nancy Bobofit's sandwich. Percy started to stand.

"That's it," he said. I, unexpectedly for both me and Percy, pulled him back down to his seat.

"You're already on probation. You know that you'll be blamed if anything happens on this trip," I said.

"_You didn't say it how you were supposed to!" _Grover said.

"_Well, you forget, goat boy, that I'm the one here!" _I said back. Grover humphed in my mind and then went silent.

"Fine, Erika," Percy responded.

"_HE KNOWS MY NAME GROVER EXPLAIN!" _I mentally yelled at him in my head.

"_Like I said, you've been here the entire year instead of how I was supposed to be. So yes, he knows you."_

Oh. Well, that made sense. I just hoped that I wouldn't give myself away.

•••

Chiron led the field trip through the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I wasn't going to fall for the 'Mr. Brunner' act like I should've, I read the books and it would've been embarrassing later. He brought the class to the Greek and Roman section, which I absolutely loved. Unfortunately people around me kept muttering about 'how boring this was' and how we were 'never going to need to know this stuff later.' Nancy Bobofit of course remarked about the naked man on the _stele _and started giggling about it. Just when I was about to say it, Percy said, "Will you _shut up?_"

By doing this he earned my respect. But he also brought unwanted attention to himself because it came out a tad too loud.

Chiron said, "Mr. Jackson, did you have a comment?"

I saw Percy's face turn beet red after he said this.

"No sir," was his muttered response. Chiron just _had _to make it harder on him, but I knew that Percy would come through in the end. He pointed to an image of Kronos eating his children on the _stele_ and asked Percy to explain what it was.

"That's Kronos eating his kids, right?"

"Yes," Chiron said, before continuing with, "And he did this because…"

"Well…" Percy started, "Kronos was the king god and-"

_Percy, really? King GOD? You really need to study your mythology more. _I thought.

Thankfully, Chiron corrected him. "King god?" he asked.

"Titan," Percy corrected himself. "And...he didn't trust his kids, who were the gods. So, um, Kronos ate them, right? But his wife hid baby Zeus, and gave Cronus a rock to eat instead. And later, when Zeus grew up, he tricked his dad, Kronos, into barfing up his brothers and sisters-"

Of course, when he said this, a blonde girl behind us suddenly exclaimed, "Ewwwwww!"

_Seriously, do these girls have no sense of maturity at all? _I thought.

"_Nope," _Grover replied.

"_Goat boy, was I thinking to you? I think not. So could you please not be so nosy?"_

"_Fine," _was the only response I got before he went silent.

"-so then there was a big fight between the gods and the Titans," Percy continued, "and the gods won."

_Well, I believe that was the only time someone was able to sum up the Titan vs. Olympian war in about a paragraph,_ I thought. Of course, Nancy had to ruin Percy's accomplishment by saying, "Like we're going to use this in real life. Like it's going to say on our job applications, 'Please explain why Kronos ate his kids'."

I could now see why Percy didn't like the klepto girl so much. I wanted to knock some sense into her head. Possibly with a fundamental item used in building. Like a brick. Chiron of course, with his super hearing, said, "And why, Mr. Jackson, to paraphrase Miss Bobofit's excellent question, does this matter in real life?"

_Finally_ someone had put the redheaded klepto in her place. I couldn't help but mutter to her, "Busted!"

She, not so kindly, told me to shut up which put her on my bad list, which once you get on, you don't get off. Ever. Percy shrugged beside me and responded, "I don't know, sir."

Chiron looked disappointed for a moment before stating, "I see. Well, half credit, Mr. Jackson. Zeus did indeed feed Kronos a mixture of mustard and wine, which made him disgorge his other five children, who, of course, being immortal gods, had been living and growing up completely undigested in the Titan's stomach. The gods defeated their father, sliced him to pieces with his own scythe, and scattered his remains in Tartarus, the darkest part of the Underworld. On that happy note, it's time for lunch. Mrs. Dodds, would you lead us back outside?"

If that was a happy note for him, he must be crazier than the fates. I continued to walk to the doors with Percy until Chiron called him back. Percy told me to keep going, and Grover agreed with him in my mind. I knew nothing bad would happen until after Nancy got pushed into the fountain, so I believed that it would be safe to go outside. The clouds overhead were extremely dark, and I could somehow tell how many water particles were in each of them, which was extremely odd.

"_It's you being a cloud nymph. You can control the clouds and some winds," _Grover explained.

"_Great. So now I can predict the weather and possibly control it."_

"_Yep. Now pay attention. Percy's about to come out."_

Percy came down the steps a few moments later looking a bit confused. I was sitting by the fountain, far away from the other kids. I didn't want to be associated with them. I wasn't a juvenile delinquent, and I didn't want to be labeled as one. I waved for him to come sit by me.

"Detention?" I asked him, even though I knew it wasn't true.

"Nah," he said, "not from Brunner. I just wish he'd lay off me sometimes. I mean-I'm not a genius," Percy replied.

I began to think about how hungry I was. Hey, don't judge me, I hadn't eaten since the school mystery meat back in Montana.

"_Don't you dare," _Grover said.

"_But I'm hungry…."_

"_Say something uplifting instead!"_

"_Sorry goat boy, you forget who's really in charge here," _I replied.

"Can I have your apple?" I asked Percy. He gave it to me, and I ate it ravenously. I finished it quickly and noticed ginger-klepto girl attempting to steal items from tourists, so I decided to try out some of my powers… if I had any. I imagined a wind pushing the purse that she was sticking her hand into so it would smack into her face, and then _wham! _It happened!

Percy was about to unwrap his sandwich when Nancy came over with her friends and then dumped her food in my lap.

_Stay calm. _I thought. _Resist the urge to break her nose._

"_Wow, you're violent," _remarked Grover.

"_Get used to it, you're sharing a head with me."_

"_Oh joy!" _he said sarcastically.

This conversation, yet again, took a very short amount of time, so I was able to watch Percy's face contort with anger. Then Nancy suddenly had a small string of water wrap around her and pull her into the fountain. It happened so quickly that I could barely notice it, but I did.

"Percy pushed me!" klepto girl yelled.

Of course, Alecto/Mrs. Dodds materialized in thin air besides us. If that wasn't creepy enough, she looked at Percy and said, "Now, honey-" in that really creepy voice of hers. Percy, being an idiot, guessed his punishment.

"I know," he grumbled, "a whole month erasing math workbooks."

She glared at him and said, "Come with me."  
I had to do something _fast. _"Wait! It was me! I pushed her in the fountain, it's my fault, Percy didn't have a reason to push her, she dumped the food on _my _lap-"

Have I mentioned that Mrs. Dodds had a death glare that could make Kampê cry for her mother? Well, she fixed that glare on me and I suddenly couldn't talk.

"I don't think so, Miss Smith."

"But-"

"You. Will. Stay. _Here._" she said.

"_Shoot, what do I do? He doesn't have Riptide yet, he'll be fury food! He didn't steal the bolt!"_

"_Wait," _Grover said, "_the bolt was stolen? What do we do?"  
_"_How would I know? The books are in Percy's perspective, not yours! Chiron tossed Percy Riptide before Alecto charged him!"_

"_Okay then, we go tell Chiron."_

Percy broke the internal conversation by saying, "It's okay, Erika. Thanks for trying."

"Honey," Mrs. Dodds said in her croaky voice, "_Now._"

I watched them go up the steps and glancing between them and Chiron to see if he would notice first, but he was reading a novel. Once they went inside, I ran up to him.

"Chiron, you've got to help-"  
"Who in Hades' name are you child? And how do you know my name?" Chiron replied.

"Long story- ask the fates when you see them- I'm now a cloud nymph and I work for you, get used to it. Alecto just brought Percy inside and is going to threaten him about the master bolt's disappearance-"  
"How do you know all this? This is classified information-"

I interrupted him by saying, "There's no time! Do you want Percy Jackson to become sliced ribbons by a fury or not? Now go in there and give him Anaklusmos unless you want your greatest future student to die! We can talk about how much I know later!" I nearly yelled.

Chiron hurried off with a worried glance at me. Waiting outside was torture. I decided to walk back to the fountain so it would look like I hadn't moved. Chiron soon came out of the building looking completely normal and went back to where he previously was and opened the same novel. Percy soon came out a few moments afterwards looking quite pale.

Nancy said to him, "I hope Mrs. Kerr whipped your butt."

Percy looked confused before saying, "Who?"

Klepto girl rolled her eyes before saying, "Our _teacher. _Duh!"

He blinked and asked her what she was talking about. He soon came over to me and asked me where Mrs. Dodds was. Grover, being an unaccomplished liar, made me hesitate before saying, "Who?"

"_Why are you such a bad liar?" _I asked Grover.

"_It's not my fault!"_

Percy said, "Not funny Erika, this is serious," before walking over to Chiron to talk to him. Thankfully Chiron is a good liar. All I could hear was Chiron's last response: "Percy, there is no Mrs. Dodds on this trip. As far as I know, there has never been a Mrs. Dodds at Yancy Academy. Are you feeling alright?"

Percy looked at him funny and walked away. Chiron looked at me and motioned me to come towards him.

"Whatever your name is-" he began.

"Erika," I interrupted.

"Fine then, Erika, after we get back I will need to speak with you in my classroom. I hope you know where it is," Chiron said.

"Unfortunately sir, I don't. And I will also need a place to sleep, this is my first time here," I replied.

"I'm in room 25. And as for a room, I'm sure we can find you one soon."

It seemed like I was going to be staying at Yancy Academy for a while.

**Me: Don, what are you doing here?**

**Don the Faun: Helping you get reviews.**

**Me: *looks at sign* Will go away for reviews? Don, what are you doing?**

**Don: Not going away until you get more reviews. **

**Me: please help me I don't have any denarii to bribe him with**

**~Cassandra-Caroline**


	5. Chapter 4

**Grover: Why did you replace me?**

**Me: Because Erika needed someone to replace and I couldn't split up Percabeth.**

**Grover: But why not Clarisse? **

**Me: Because Erika isn't mean**

***hears scream in the distance***

**Me: Gotta go Grover, you didn't see me. *gives death glare* If you say you did, you will not be a happy satyr. Say it when I'm gone, please. **

**Grover: *gulps* Cassandra-Caroline doesn't own PJO or anything in it. She owns Erika, though, and most of the dialogue is from the book.**

After the fury incident, the bus ride back to Yancy was very stressed. Percy was continuously asking people where Mrs. Dodds was, which earned him a couple of crazy looks. We finally pulled into the school and people started getting off the bus. I went to search for room 25 so I could talk with Chiron. I walked down a hallway reading the golden numbers on the doors. _23, 24, 25, there it is, _I thought. I entered the room and saw Chiron in his wheelchair behind his desk.

"So, Erika," Chiron started, "Why did you tell me to ask the Fates about you?"

_How am I going to explain this without sounding crazy? _I thought.

"_Well," _Grover said, "_you could always just tell him the truth."_

"Before I say anything, I'm going to swear on the River Styx that everything I say is true," I responded. Chiron's eyes went wide before he motioned for me to continue.

"I used to live in Montana with my aunt. I'm in sixth grade and my best friend is named Maria. We had recently read a series of books called _Percy Jackson and the Olympian_s_. _The first book was called _The Lightning Thief. _I've read the books multiple times, so I could quote what happens next. The book starts off with the field trip that occurred today, except Percy is friends with a satyr named Grover Underwood," I said before Chiron interrupted.

"Erika, Grover Underwood has been missing for over a year, and no one knows what happened to him-"

"Actually, he's a fly in Polyphemus' cave in the Sea of Monsters, but that's not important right now," I said.

"_Hey, that is important!" _Grover interjected. Chiron stared at me for a moment before I realized that Grover had made me say it out loud.

"I'll explain that in a moment. So, I had gone to the library when I heard two people talking about how a story had changed and it could affect how the whole universe worked. They went away after I accidentally knocked down the first Percy Jackson book. I decided to read it again, so I went home. I opened it and there was a note inside saying that it was up to me to fix everything. I read the first chapter title, which was, _I Accidentally Vaporize My Pre-Algebra Teacher, _when the world went white.

"I woke up in a cavern that was filled with tapestries of the history of the world. There were three ancient ladies at a loom. Atropos cut a thread once before Clotho started spouting random facts about me. Then Lachesis made it worse by talking about my life. Atropos put them in their place but then they all proceeded to freak me out," I said.

"You've had a conversation with the Fates?" Chiron exclaimed.

"Yes, but I'm not done yet," I replied. "They then told me that they were the Fates, and said that I had been yanked out of my tapestry because someone was missing, so they replaced him with me. Then I woke up on the schoolbus dodging Nancy Bobofit's lunch with the voice of a satyr in my head telling me stuff."

Chiron looked at me in disbelief for a couple of moments.

"_Is he normally like this?" _I asked Grover.

"_Nope. Congratulations, you've succeeded in confusing the smartest teacher in the world," _Grover said sarcastically.

"Oh," I said, "And now I'm also apparently a cloud nymph instead of a normal human and I work for you now."

The centaur still looked shocked with this information.

"Hello? Earth to Chiron, are you in there?" I asked him.

"Yes, sorry. I wouldn't have believed it if you hadn't sworn on the Styx, though. But exactly how much do you know about our world?" Chiron asked me.

"Well, I know that Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena, was brought to Half-Blood Hill along with Thalia Grace, daughter of Zeus, and Luke Castellan, son of Hermes, by the satyr Grover Underwood, who is currently in my head. Percy Jackson is a very powerful demigod, the Great Prophecy is, _A Half-Blood of the eldest gods shall reach sixteen against all odds, and see the world in endless sleep, a hero's soul, cursed blade shall reap. A single choice shall end his days, Olympus to preserve or raze. _You're the son of Kronos, which is why most people don't trust you. You like old music, and the penalty for maiming during a Capture the Flag game is losing dessert privileges. Hades cursed the Oracle back in the 40's because Zeus killed Maria DiAngelo, and May Castellan went crazy because she tried to host the oracle's spirit. Hermes' snakes names are George and Martha, and they always want rats. Blackbeard and his pirates are currently guinea pigs on Circe's Island, and you know how to cure pit scorpion venom, oh and Daedalus is still alive," I would've continued except I was interrupted by Chiron again.

"_Di Immortales, _Erika, aren't you worried about what would happen if you told me the future?" he asked.

"I actually, believe it or not, didn't tell you anything important. Except for the Daedalus stuff. Forget I said that. And forget the surname DiAngelo," I said.

"So," Chiron said, "Do we have to worry about any more fury attacks at Yancy?"

"Nope. Not another monster attack while Percy is at Yancy. But he gets in a _lot _of trouble later…" I said.

"Child, do you know what happened to the master bolt?" Chiron inquired.

"Yep. I know how it was stolen, who by, for whom, and when. I also know that Percy is being accused of the theft-"

"Why is Percy being accused?"

_Styx! _I thought.

"Ummmmm…. how 'bout you just forget that last part?" I said.

"If Percy was being accused, that would mean…" Chiron's eyes got comically big. "No… that's not possible… Erika, please tell me that it's not possible," he said.

"I don't know what you're talking about and if you mention it I'm sure that the Fates won't be happy with either of us," I responded.

Chiron nodded solemnly before saying, "You now have your own room on floor three. Be sure to visit me as often as you can, and be sure to keep up with your studies. I promise that I won't mention this conversation unless you ask me to."

"Thanks," I replied.

I went up to my room and got set up.

_This is going to be one long year, _I thought.

•••

The rest of the year passed quickly. I had multiple meetings with Chiron, in which he would get angry and frustrated that I couldn't give away any of the future, but I had written him lines to say for the end of the year. Unfortunately, I didn't have Grover's P.E. excuse, but I realized that as a cloud nymph, I could run like the wind. Chiron had me put in all the classes Percy was in, so I got to see him call a teacher an old sot in the last week of school before finals. Percy had continued to spring Mrs. Dodds references on me, which made Grover make me hesitate before allowing me to answer. The night before the Latin exam, I had made sure to go to Chiron's room, because Percy had to overhear the conversation.

"Mr. Brunner, I'm worried about Percy, sir," I told him as soon as I saw a shadow at the door. Chiron gave me a confused look before I continued. "He's going to be alone this summer. I mean, a Kindly One in the _school!_ Now that we know for sure, and _they_ know too-" After saying this, I mouthed to Chiron, _We would only make matters worse by rushing him,_ very exaggeratedly. He got the idea and remembered what I had told him to say.

"We would only make matters worse by rushing him. We need the boy to mature more."

"But he may not have time. The summer solstice deadline-" I replied.

"Will have to be resolved without him, Erika. Let him enjoy his ignorance while he still can."

"Sir, he _saw_ her…"

"His imagination," Chiron said. "The Mist over the students and staff will be enough to convince him of that."

"Sir, I...I can't fail. You know what that would mean."

"You haven't failed, Erika," Chiron said with a wink towards me. "I should've seen her for what she was. Now let's just worry about keeping Percy alive until next fall-"

Cue book dropped by Percy. _It's working! _I thought. Chiron looked startled and went outside. He searched around a bit before coming back inside the room. We waited a few minutes before he said, "Percy was there?"

"Yep!" I said, popping the _p._ "He had to hear that exact conversation, otherwise he wouldn't act the same way. Now, I gotta go. I need to pretend to study with him." After I said this, I ran from Chiron's classroom and went to Percy's dorm. I pulled out my Latin book and got ready to study. Percy came in looking pale.

"Hey," I said. "You going to be ready for this test?"

He didn't answer me.

"You look awful," I said while frowning. "Is everything okay?" I asked.

"Just...tired," he replied.

"Looks like I have to go back to my room then. Night, Percy," I said.

Percy didn't respond.

**Yes, this chapter is going to be split in two. Be sure to review! Don still hasn't left….  
~Cassandra-Caroline**


	6. Chapter 5

**Sorry about the wait, hope you guys read the Author's Note. I know, I feel bad for posting it, but I needed some time to finish this chapter. **

**So, due to the reviews by Review 307, whoever you are, I will give you what you asked for: During this chapter we get to be inside Percy's head instead! Yay! **

**And thank you to those of you who read this. It means so much for people to read what I write. Now, to the disclaimer!**

**Travis: Cassandra-Caroline, we did it!**

**Me: Did **_**what?**_

**Connor: You know...the prank for-**

**Me: Connor don't you dare continue that sentence unless you want to have a rather unfortunate role in this story. **

**Connor: *gulps***

**Me: Same for you Travis. Now, you two choose-One of you says the disclaimer, the other runs past Annabeth so I can escape. **

**Travis: Do we have a choice in this? **

**Me: No. Now go, my minions! *runs off***

**Connor: I call disclaimer!**

**Travis: why me? *goes off*Hey Annabeth!**

**Connor: Cassandra-Caroline doesn't own any of this stuff, except for Erika. Of course. **

**Percy POV**

I was not having a good semester. First I see demonic math teachers, then people claim that there are no demonic math teachers, and then looked at me like I was crazy. The only way that this could get worse was if I wasn't invited back next year- oh wait, I wasn't.

The dreams didn't really help either. My mind kept replaying Mrs. Dodds in demon form coming for me, which isn't exactly calming. The weather kept getting worse. Giant thunderstorms, freak tornadoes, planes crashing in the Atlantic- you name it, it probably happened.

Even though I wasn't invited back next year, I just wanted to see my mom. I wanted to be back in our little apartment on the Upper East Side, even if I had to put up with Smelly Gabe and his stupid poker parties. I would even go to public school just to stay there.

But I would miss some things about Yancy. The scenery was amazing, and I could see the Hudson River out of my dorm window. I would miss Erika, one of my only friends, even if she was a little crazy at times. I just hoped she would be okay without me next year. I know that she can protect herself, but I kinda feel like a big brother to her- I want her to be happy. I would definitely miss Latin and Mr. Brunner. Even though I didn't believe in myself, he seemed to believe that I was capable of great things, which made me want to be worth that.

Exams began to creep closer. I started to only study for Latin, especially since Mr. Brunner said that his subject could mean life-and-death for me. Call me crazy, but I sorta believed him.

The night before the Latin final, I got so aggravated with my mythology book that I threw it across the room. Words had decided to start swimming and doing loop-de-loops off and around the page. _Stupid dyslexia, _I thought. How was I supposed to remember the difference between Chiron and Charon or Polydictes and Polydeuces if I couldn't even spell the names correctly? And conjugating Latin verbs? Impossible.

As I paced around my room I remembered what Mr. Brunner said to me. _I will accept only the best from you, Percy Jackson. _Well, what if I couldn't do it? I decided to go see him. I took a breath and picked up the mythology book that had run into my wall.

I'd never asked a teacher for help before. Maybe if I talked to him, he might be able to help me. At the least, I would be able to apologise for the big fat F I would receive on the exam tomorrow. I didn't want to leave Yancy with him thinking I hadn't tried.

I walked down to his office. All the rest of the doors were closed, but Mr. Brunner's was wide open. Light from his window was reaching across the hallway floor. I was a few steps away from the door when I heard Mr. Brunner ask a question. Then a very familiar voice responded.

"...worried about Percy, sir," said the _very_ familiar voice. I froze when I heard her response.

_Erika? _I thought. _What is she doing here, and why are they talking about me? _

"...alone this summer," Erika continued. "I mean, a Kindly One in the _school!_ Now that we know for sure, and _they_ know too-"

"We would only make matters worse by rushing him," Mr. Brunner said. "We need the boy to mature more."

"But we may not have time. The summer solstice deadline-"

_What is the summer solstice deadline? _I thought.

"Will have to be resolved without him, Erika. Let him enjoy his ignorance while he still can," Mr. Brunner interjected.

"Sir, he _saw_ her…" Erika said. _Finally!_ I thought. _Mrs. Dodds was real! Wait, shouldn't that fact scare me more than relieve me?_

"His imagination," Mr. Brunner said. _Imagination? I just got confirmation that she is real! This is _not _my imagination! _I thought. Mr. Brunner continued, "The Mist over the students and staff will be enough to convince him of that."

"Sir, I...I can't fail," Erika said. _Fail at what? _I thought. "You know what that would mean," she said.

"You haven't failed, Erika," Mr. Brunner said kindly. "I should've seen her for what she was. Now let's just worry about keeping Percy alive until next fall-"

I couldn't help it, I dropped my book. Wouldn't you if you had just heard someone say, _well, we should try to keep him alive until next fall._ Don't you think hearing that might be just a bit shocking? Unfortunately, Mr. Brunner went silent when the book hit the floor. I picked up my book as quietly as I could and backed up _very _quickly. I felt behind me and found a doorknob. I twisted it and slipped inside. I stayed there for five minutes before I was sure that they were gone. I went up back to my dorm and found Erika sitting on the other bed, acting like she had been there the whole time.

I stared at her in shock as she said, "Hey, you going to be ready for this test?" I didn't respond.

"You look awful," she said. _Well, thanks, Erika. Now I feel bad too. _"Is everything okay?" she asked.

"Just...tired," I said.

"Looks like I've got to go back to my room then," she said. "Night, Percy!"

I didn't respond, I just closed the door. Hey, it was better than freaking out and saying, 'I know you've been talking about me with our latin teacher!' I decided to go to sleep. My last thought was how only one thing was clear: Erika and Mr. Brunner were talking about me behind my back, and they thought that I was in danger.

•••

The next afternoon, as I was leaving the three-hour Latin exam, my eyes swimming with all the Greek and Roman names I'd misspelled, Mr. Brunner called me back inside.

For a moment, I was worried that he'd found out that I was eavesdropping the night before, but that didn't seem to be the problem.

"Percy," Mr. Brunner said, "Don't be discouraged about leaving Yancy, It's...it's for the best."

I could tell that he was trying to be kind, but what he said had embarrassed me. Even though he was speaking quietly, other kids could hear him. Nancy Bobofit smirked at me and made sarcastic little kissing motions with her lips.

"Okay, sir," I mumbled. _Seriously, _I thought, _how is this supposed to make me feel better?_

"I mean," Mr. Brunner said as he wheeled his chair back and forth, "This isn't the right place for you. It was only a matter of time."

Well, _that _was hurtful. Here was my favorite teacher, telling me in front of other students, that I wasn't good enough or smart enough for Yancy. I thought that he believed in me, but now it seems like he didn't.

"Right," I said, hating that my voice was shaky.

"No, no," Mr. Brunner said, "Oh, confound it all. What I'm trying to say...you're not normal, Percy, That's nothing to be-"

This couldn't get any worse. My favorite teacher was telling me the one thing that I didn't want to hear-I'm not like everyone else. I'm dyslexic and have ADHD, so that makes me weird. People don't necessarily like me. Bullies like Nancy will pick on me because I'm different for reasons I can't help.

"Thanks," I blurted out. "Thanks a lot, sir, for remind me." I walked out of his door after I said this, but I heard him call out my name from the hallway. It didn't matter, I wasn't going back in that room.

•••

On the last day of the term, I shoved my clothes into my suitcase.

The other guys were joking around, talking about their vacation plans. One was going on a hiking trip through Europe. Another was going on a cruise in the Caribbean for an entire month. Yes, they were juvenile delinquents, like me, but the difference was that they were rich juvenile delinquents. Their daddies were executives, or ambassadors, or celebrities. I was a nobody, from a family of nobodies, just like me.

They asked me what I would be doing this summer and I told them I was going back to the city. One said, 'Cool,' and then they forgot all about me and continued talking about how they were going out of the country.

What I didn't tell them was that I would have to get a summer job walking dogs or selling magazine subscriptions, and spend my free time worrying about where I'd go to school next year.

I only dreaded saying goodbye to Erika. As it turned out, I didn't have to after all. She had booked a ticket to Manhattan on the same Greyhound as me, so there we were, together again, heading into the city.

During the entire bus ride, she kept glancing at the people around us nervously, but she did it like she wasn't meaning to do it at all. I realized that she always acted like this when we left Yancy, but that was when people were about to bully her. No one was going to be mean to her on the Greyhound. I couldn't stand it anymore.

"Looking for Kindly Ones?" I said.

She jumped, looked at me dead in the eye, and exclaimed, "Wha-what do you mean?"

"Umm...I might've eavesdropped on your conversation with Mr. Brunner the night before the Latin exam?" I said hurriedly.

If looks could kill, I'd be dead already by the glare she was giving me. She sighed before asking me, "How much did you hear?"

"Oh...not much. What's the summer solstice deadline?" I asked her.

She winced, which was unusual for her. "Look, Percy...I was just worried for you, okay? I mean, hallucinating about demon math teachers…"

"Erika…" I started, but she interrupted me.

"And I was telling Mr. Brunner that maybe you were stressed out, or something, because Mrs. Dodds doesn't exist, and…"

"Erika, you're a terrible liar," I said.

She blushed before she pulled out a neat business card from her pocket. She held it out to me before saying, "Percy, take this, please. Just in case you need me this summer. To talk or anything."

The card was in extremely fancy script, which made my eyes burn with me trying to figure it out. I stared at it for a moment before I was able to read it.

Erika Smith

Keeper

Half Blood Hill

Long Island, New York

(800)009-0009

"What's Half-Bl-" I started before she interrupted me.

"Don't say it out loud, idiot!" she exclaimed. "That's um… my summer address?" She said it like it was a question, which didn't make sense. But if she had a summer address, her family was probably as rich as most of the other kids at Yancy.

"Okay," I said, "So, like, if I want to come visit your mansion."

She looked at me weirdly for a moment before responding, "Or….or if you need me."

"Why would I need you?" That came out harsher than I meant it to. She looked hurt before she responded, "Look, Percy, the truth is I kinda have to protect you."

Her protect me? I've been sticking up for her since the beginning of school! After the field trip though, she seemed to be able to protect herself instead. But why would I need protecting?

"Erika, what exactly are you protecting me from?" I asked.

There was a grinding noise under our feet. Black smoke poured into the bus. The driver cussed and brought the Greyhound over to the side of the road.

After a few minutes in the stopped bus, the driver said we all needed to get off so he could fix it. Erika and I exited with everyone else.

We were stopped at a really normal place, I guess. You wouldn't notice it if your car didn't break down there. Our side of the road had a few maple trees. The other side was much more interesting. Across the road was an old fashioned fruit stand. The fruit they were selling looked really good. But there were no customers, just three old ladies sitting in rocking chairs in the shade of a maple tree, knitting the biggest socks I've ever seen.

When I say big, I mean I wondered who they were for: Bigfoot or the Abominable snowman. The lady on the right knitted one while the lady on the left knitted the other. The lady in the middle held a giant basket of electric blue yarn.

They looked ancient, but the weird thing was that they seemed to be looking right at me and Erika. I heard her mutter, "Why, of all the people I have to see again, do I have to see them?"

"Erika?" I asked. "Hey-"  
"Please tell me they aren't looking at you," she said. Her fingers twitched, and she looked like she either wanted to punch or hug the old ladies, but at the same time, she seemed scared of them.

"Yeah, weird, huh? Think those socks would fit me?" I asked her.

"Not funny, Percy. Not funny at all," she remarked. Then the old lady in the middle took out an ancient looking pair of shears. I glanced at Erika, and her face had paled. I heard her mumble something like, "Atropos, don't you dare-" before the old lady snipped the string.

Somehow, I could hear the yarn cut from across the street, including the cars zooming past. Beside me Erika took a breath in before saying, "Percy. We are going on that bus, now. No matter how smelly or hot it is, we are getting inside the bus." The second she said this the driver wrenched a piece of metal from the back of the bus. The Greyhound shuddered then roared back to life. The other passengers cheered while we got back on the bus. For some reason, I felt feverish, like I had the flu.

"Erika," I asked, "What are you not telling me?"

She looked at me for a moment before asking me a question instead of answering. "Percy, what did you see at the fruit stand?"

"You mean the old ladies? What is it about them? They're not like...Mrs. Dodds, right?"

The look she gave me told me that they were much, much worse. "Just tell me what you saw."

"The middle one took out her scissors, and she cut the yarn," I said.

"Atropos," she murmured. She then closed her eyes and made a gesture with her fingers that could've been crossing herself, but it wasn't. It was something else, something almost-older.

She said, "You saw her snip the thread."

"Yeah. So?" I asked her. But even as I said it, I knew it was a big deal.

"This is not happening," Erika said, which was starting to freak me out. "This can't be like Thalia."

"Who?" I asked.

"What is it with them and sixth graders? Is that their normal, hey we should go find them, age?" was the only response I got from her.

"Erika. What are you talking about? You're starting to scare me," I told her.

"Percy, promise me you will let me walk you home from the bus station. Please," she said.

I promised that she could, however weird her request seemed.

"Is this like a superstition or something?" I asked her.

She didn't answer.

"Erika-when they cut the thread-does that mean that somebody's gonna die?"  
She looked at me for a moment like she was thinking sad things before turning away. I might've imagined it, but it looked like she forced herself to nod slightly.

**Soooo… how is it? Thank you for reading my work. You guys know the drill- read &amp; review! I'll explain in the next chapter why she's acting so jumpy with the Fates incident.**

**~Cassandra-Caroline**


	7. Chapter 6

**People, I am SO SO SO SO SO SO sorry for making you wait for an update! Life has been kinda busy lately, so….**

**But still, that isn't a good excuse. Still, I'm sorry. Now, on to the story!**

**Percy: Cassandra-Caroline, I'm only speaking to you for Annabeth because she, because of a prank with spiders, is hyperventilating in that corner over there. Did you tell the Stolls that she's scared of spiders?**

**Me: Percy, dearest, how could someone as sweet and innocent as me tell the Stolls Annabeth's greatest fear? Granted, I may have blackmailed her with it earlier, but it is common knowledge that children of Athena are terrified by spiders. **

**Percy: I'm just gonna pretend that I understood what you said there and go with a NO, you didn't tell the Stolls. Wise girl, please get up. Hey, guess what? We can go catch the Stolls now so we're good! I'll even get you a blue cookie!**

**Annabeth: Get revenge on Stolls now, eat blue cookies later. Bye Cassandra-Caroline! **

**Me: Wait! NOOOOO who will do the disclaimer now?  
*random tree has poof of green smoke next to it***

**Juniper: Cassandra-Caroline doesn't own PJO or anything in it!**

***poof of green smoke and she disappears***

**Me: *shudder* Those dryads really need to stop doing that.**

Erika's POV

My. Freaking. GOSH. I'm gonna KILL Grover! Normally, I wouldn't be so scared by the fates, but some random satyr *cough* Grover *cough* somehow hijacked my emotions and made me start freaking out. IN FRONT OF PERCY. And then when I tried to tell him that if Atropos cuts a thread, that person dies, but Grover decided to start yelling, _BE STILL. DON'T MOVE. DON'T YOU DARE NOD ERIKA! _I dare you to try concentrating enough to nod when a crazy satyr is screaming in your head.

I made Percy promise to let me go home with him. Somehow, it worked. I know, I'm wasn't supposed to go to his apartment, but I really wanted to be acquainted with Smelly Gabe. And yes, acquainted with a brick. To his face. Now I finally have a chance to put him in his place.

When we got in the taxi together, Percy told the cabbie his address and gave him a $20. He sat back and looked like he didn't want to talk, so I decided to have a yelling match with Grover.

'_GROVER. UNDERWOOD,' _I thought yelled at him. I received no reply, so I decided to blackmail him.

'_GROVER UNDERWOOD, IF YOU DON'T ANSWER ME RIGHT NOW I WILL SOMEHOW CONVINCE MR. D THAT YOU DON'T DESERVE A SEARCHER'S LICENSE.'_

I knew that I was being a little harsh with that threat, but I had to go further when he still didn't respond.

'_Grover, so help me, if you don't answer me I will tell the world that Pan is dying and prove it.'_

When I said this, I could feel his shock. Firstly because I said that Pan was dying, not already dead.

'_Erika, you know that Pan's alive? And to prove it you would have to know where...' _He broke off while he thought for a second.

'_ERIKA SMITH YOU KNOW WHERE PAN IS?!'_ Grover yelled at me. I decided to torment him further. Hey, this was _my _head, after all.

'_Of course I do, and I might've told you if you hadn't been such a jerk,'_ I told him. I could imagine his face going tomato red before I laughed out loud.

'_Shoot!' _I thought to myself as Percy looked over at me.

"Erika," he started, "are you okay?"

"Of course I'm okay! Why wouldn't I be perfectly fine?" I responded in a rush. He looked at me weirdly for a moment before continuing to talk with me.

"Maybe because you just laughed out loud for no good reason?" He asked cautiously.

"Oh, I was just thinking about something funny that happened yesterday," I said, but I made it sound like a question. He looked at me funnily again before dropping the subject.

"Could you wait outside until I tell you it's okay to come in?" He asked.

"Wow," I said sarcastically, "you sure you don't want me to just climb up the fire escape instead?"

"Umm… maybe?"

I couldn't believe him. I _really_ wanted to meet (read _punch) _Smelly Gabe.

"Are you really that ashamed of your friends from school?" I asked him.

"Not really… More like I don't want you to meet my step-dad," he told me.

"Well, to solve what I'm sure might be a problem later, why don't you let me keep the change from this ride until I make a dangerous climb through the fire escape to your room?" I suggested. He looked surprised for a moment before thinking. Then a lightbulb went off in his head.

"So, you'll give it all back once I'm in my room?"

"Yep!" I replied. "Then, since I'm assuming you don't want me to meet your step-father, you can give it to your mother instead of funding a poker game." He looked absolutely shocked. It would've been funny except I'd read about how Smelly Gabe mistreated him.

"Don't worry, even if that is the truth, your secret's safe with me," I said quickly. He looked thankful and was about to reply when the taxi came to a halt.

"Here you go," the cabbie announced. I took the change while Percy went and got his bag from the back of the taxi.

"Erika," Percy started, "Don't you have a bag?"

"Umm… no?"

How was I supposed to tell him that my clothes appeared wherever I went? I'm perfectly sure that would make total sense. The fates had decided to make my clothes follow me.

"Just my purse! All my clothes fit in there? And the rest are coming on the next Greyhound," I said, and snapped my fingers. His eyes blurred a bit before he shrugged and turned towards his house. Thank the gods that I convinced Chiron to teach me how to manipulate the mist.

"Okay, so Percy, where exactly is this fire escape and which floor and window do I stop at?" I asked him.

"Take a left right there and you'll see it. I'm on the third floor, and go in the sixth window. See you up there," he said unceremoniously before opening the door and leaving me to climb Hades knows how many steps.

•••

After climbing three flights of rickety stairs, I made it to the third floor. I couldn't remember which window it was, so I decided to ask Grover.

'_Was it the fifth or the sixth window?'_

'_Umm, I think the fifth?' _He said uncertainly.

'_Grover dearest, THINK and KNOW are two very different things here!'_

'_Fifth! Definitely the fifth!" _He responded before going silent.

"Fifth it is then," I muttered to myself before sliding open the fifth window and slipping through it.

I looked around and saw a _really _dirty living room. There was an old and very stained couch in one corner, and an ancient looking TV playing a football game in front of it. I dreaded what I would see when I turned to the left, but I had to nonetheless. As I looked at four people sitting around a table, the walrus looking one with a horrendus stench stood up and glared at me.

"What the ****(insert whatever word you want here) are you doing in my house?!" The man who must be Smelly Gabe yelled at me.

'_Grover, you idiot, it was the sixth!'_

Smelly Gabe came closer, and I gulped.

**MWAHAHAHAHA! FIRST CLIFF-HANGER! Okay, now that I've gotten the evil side out, on to the rest. You know the drill- Read &amp; Review! I also need a little help deciding what should happen next, so please send me your ideas!**

**Happy late thanksgiving!**

**~Cassandra-Caroline**


	8. Chapter 7

**Sorry about the cliff-hanger there….not really! Now, on to the story!**

**Travis: Cassandra-Caroline, WHY?  
Me: Travis, why are you black, blue, and bleeding? And soaking wet too?**

**Travis: This is what happens when someone pranks Annabeth when she's with Percy. *moans and falls to the ground***

***poof of green smoke* **

**Juniper: Hey, maybe we should get him to the infirmary.**

**Me: Nah, he'll be good. **

**Juniper: But-**

**Me: *death glare* I highly doubt you want to be de-leaved in this story… I know that it happens to give dryads the appearance of being bald…**

**Juniper: *gulps* Maybe he's fine where he is…**

***poof of green smoke***

**Me: Travis**

**Travis: WHAT**

**Me: Can you say it?**

**Travis: The disclaimer?**

**Me: Of course**

**Travis: Why should I?**

**Me: If you do, I'll bring you to the infirmary.**

**Travis: fine. Cassandra-Caroline doesn't own anything except her imagination. All the characters-**

**Me: Except Erika.**

**Travis: Fine, except Erika, belong to Rick Riordan. Can I go to the infirmary now?**

**Me: sure. KATIE GARDENER!**

***katie walks up***

**Katie: What?**

**Me: Please take Stoll #1 to the infirmary, please.**

**Katie: fine.**

'_Grover Underwood, if I happen to live past this, I will find you and then crush you like the fly you are if you don't help me get us out of this situation!'_ I thought towards him. Grover didn't respond.

"Hi!" I started out. Hey, it seemed like a good idea at the time. "Does Sally Jackson live here?" I asked Smelly Gabe. He looked at me for a moment before responding.

"If she was, why would you be looking for her?"

"Well….." I started, but then Grover interjected with an idea.

'_Erika, say that you're her second cousin! Her parents had another sibling that was adopted, but they and their kid and husband died in a freak car accident and you were at home and you're looking for your long-lost aunt!'_ I took a breath and turned on the water works.

"Mr. Ugliano," _sniffle, _"Your wife is the only family I have left…" _sniffle,_ "My mom and dad just died in a car crash a week ago and I've been trying to find her all this time." He looked doubtful for a second, but then I saw Percy with his eyes wide open looking at me behind a corner. I glared at him, hoping that he could find his mom and tell her my sob story so I could be saved.

"And _how_ exactly, are you related to my wife?" Smelly Gabe asked.

"My grandmother was her dad's sister…" I started, but then the smelly walrus interrupted again.

"But her dad didn't have any siblings!" He exclaimed.

"Of course he did!" I said while I snapped my fingers, manipulating the Mist. "My dad was at your wedding, don't you remember?" I asked him. "He got you the watch you're wearing right now!"

He looked down at it along with his poker buddies.

"Yeah! I remember…."

"Peter," I told him.

"Peter was such a nice guy… it's a really nice watch…." Gabe mumbled. He started to waddle over to a shelf to see a wedding picture, but then Sally burst in. I glanced worriedly at her before I saw Percy right behind his mother. She took in the situation and then smiled at me before running in my direction and hugging me.

"Erika!" Sally exclaimed.

"Aunt Sally! I… I…" I started, turning on the water works again.

"It's okay, honey. You're okay. I'm sure she can stay with us for a while, right Gabriel?" She asked her husband. I snapped behind my back again before he spoke.

"Sure… your cousin Peter and his wife were really nice people…" He trailed off.

Sally glanced at me for a second and then asked, "Gabe, can Percy, Erika, and I go to Montauk in a couple of hours?"

"Sure…" I was seriously starting to LOVE the Mist. If it could do this to the meanest man I've ever read about, then I couldn't wait to see what else it could do. Sally looked down at me and smiled before she grabbed my hand and looked at Percy.

"Percy, Erika, why don't we go to Percy's room to talk?" She asked us before leading us off. Her grip on my hand was a little stronger than necessary, but she had just seen me manipulate the Mist. We walked into the hallway before going into a room that smelled even worse than Gabe, which was saying something. Car batteries and car magazines were littered all over the floor.

"Percy, you seriously need a new room," I told him. He looked at the ground for a moment before he went and sat on his bed. I kept standing while Sally went and sat beside him.

"Erika," Sally started, "I don't know you, but I've heard about you from Percy. I know that you're not my long lost relative, so how did you convince my husband?"

I looked at her for a moment before saying, "I think it would be best if Percy went out of the room for this part of the conversation." Percy looked at me, surprised.

"Hey, why do I need to go out of MY room? She's my friend! And Erika, why do you want to talk to my mom instead of me?"

'_Grover, what do we do?'_

'_How would I know?'_

'_Ugggh you leave all the work for me, don't you?'_

"Percy, I just want to talk to your mom for a moment. I'm sure she wants to know who I am before letting be go to the beach with you," I told him. He glared at me for a moment. I glared back, but he gave up and left the room with a huff.

"I'll be in your room, mom," he told Sally. She nodded before he closed the door. She then turned her full attention on me.

"Who are you, and why are you here?"

_Well, right to the point. Good for you, Sally_, I thought before responding.

'_Grover, do I tell her the full story or do I tell her the cloud nymph one?'_

'_Cloud__ nymph. That's easier to understand.'_

"Sally, I'm a seeker of a kind. I was sent to find Percy to protect him. He's not telling you everything. In January, on the field trip, we had a Algebra teacher named Mrs. Dodds," I told her. She looked at me to continue, so I did. "Let's just say, she was _one kindly_ teacher," I told her. Her eyes went wide before she started to panic.

"WHAT?! Why didn't-"

"Sally Jackson, calm down!" I interrupted her. "He defeated it on his own, with a tiny bit of help from Mr. Brunner," I told her.

"Mr. Brunner… the Latin teacher?" She asked me. I sighed. _This would've been SO much easier if she had seen him! _I thought.

"Now, I will ask you one question. Who teaches certain people with, let's say, half of no DNA how to be heroes?" I asked her before her eyes went wide once again.

"Chi-" She started, but I cut her off again.

"Names have power. Now you see why I'm here. We need to get Percy to CHB, but we have to go to the beach first," I told her.

"But if he's being followed, why don't we just go now?"  
I sighed before answering, "I've tampered with fate too much already. How's that for an answer? I wasn't supposed to be here today, he was supposed to leave his searcher at the station according to the Fates. But I really wanted to punch Smelly Gabe and also keep an eye on Percy."

Sally looked at me before talking again. "What exactly are you?"

"Let's just say I can have a bit of a _stormy_ appearance," I told her while winking and letting my form go a bit. I had discovered how to do it with Chiron's help. Just picture yourself breaking apart and _poof_! Instant cloud nymph form. I did it while looking in a mirror once and saw that my blonde hair started to swirl in an imaginary breeze. My clothes instantly changed into a grey ancient Greek off the shoulder knee high dress and silver gladiator sandals that laced up to my knee. Really, I just thought it was over kill. Apparently, so did Sally.

"Seriously?" she asked. "I get the hair, but the dress and shoes are just a bit overboard," she told me.

"I agree, but I didn't get to choose," I said while returning back to normal. I looked at her for a second before asking, "To the beach?"

She sighed before calling out to Percy. "Percy, get ready! We're going to the beach."

**So, you know the drill. Read and review! I also need some help deciding what happens next… so be sure to review! I'm going to be out of the country until January 3rd after about two days, so I'm sorry, but I won't be able to post anything else. I love to hear your ideas, so please share them!**

**~Cassandra-Caroline**


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